Tenants Fume Over Rent Hikes

Nearly 200,000 Queens tenants will take a hit in the wallet this fall, as the Rent Guidelines Board approved the largest rent hike in four years Monday. The plan calls for a rent increase of four percent for one-year leases, and six percent for two-year leases.
The preliminary plan, which goes into effect as of October 1, was approved by a 6-3 vote. A final vote on the subject is scheduled for June 22.
"Four and six percent (increases) are too high," said Tom Waters, Queens organizer for the New York State Tenants and Neighbors Coalition. "Landlords are making more than ever, and increased fuel prices shouldnt be used to justify it."
Noting that fuel prices had risen 50 percent over the past year, the Rent Guidelines Board recently issued a report to justify possible increases of eight and-a-half and 12 percent for one and two-year leases, respectively. However, Waters believes that the "higher numbers were used as a cover for the lower ones."
As of 1996, there were over 190,000 rent stabilized apartments in Queens. According to the Queens organizer, nearly half of them will be up for renewal this year, but all tenants whose lease expires before October will remain unaffected by the rent hike. For them, Waters recommends renewing for at least two years.
With tempers elevated, Mondays meeting turned raucous after board members and tenant representatives David Pagan and Jeffrey Coleman voted in favor of the increase. Angered tenants in the audience, many carrying signs such as "Rudy, Dont Raise Our Rents", "The Landlords Candidate For Senator," and "Im a Tenant and I Vote" flooded the tenant reps with boos, while others screamed "shame on you."
"I did what I did to prevent a worse result from happening." said Coleman following the meeting.
Tenants were not the only ones steaming mad with the results of Mondays meeting.
Jack Freund, vice-president of the Rent Stabilization Association called the new plan "inadequate." He added that because of an eight percent increase in costs for landlords, many property owners will be hurt by the new plan. "The fact that the tenant reps agreed to this plan, shows that it was way too low," said Freund.
The Rent Stabilization Association had been lobbying for as much as a nine and 15 percent rent increase. He said that a five percent spike in real estate tax, along with the increased cost of maintaining the citys aging buildings, all made the rent increase necessary.
Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who appoints members to the board said that the increases "sound very, very high" and he would not support the increase.